Assessing "Translation readiness": A maturity model

The importance of competent translation is becoming increasingly evident. Many companies are unsure of how to deal with the conflicts of high volume, fast turn-around and reasonable cost. We propose five levels of "translation readiness" or maturity: Reactionism, Quality Awareness, Consistency, Long-Term Solutions and Continuous Improvement. These levels indicate an organization's ability to manage high volumes of translation more quickly while keeping costs under control. While recognizing the uniqueness of each organization, we propose that assessing the level of "readiness" can lead to improvements in quality, cost, and turn-around time.